This invention relates to a type of valve known as a xe2x80x9ccheck-valve.xe2x80x9d Check valves are well known and are widely used to control backflow of fluids carrying undesirable contaminants into a fluid supply. These valves have evolved to become highly specialized in their function and operation. These valves are similar in that they all contain spring-loaded members that are biased towards the valve-closed position until fluid pressure acting on the checking members forces the valves open. Typically, a backflow preventer utilizes two check valves in a conventional serial combination for preventing the backflow of a fluid.
The pressure required to open a check valve is established by regulation and provides a minimum degree of protection against reverse flow. Furthermore, regulations governing backflow preventers require that a check valve and associated parts must be removable for inspection and for field service repair without having to remove the valve housing from the fluid conduit system to which it is attached.
In a conventional design, the checking member is a poppet-type check in which the movement of the checking member is linear and remains in the fluid path. The energy required to open these check valves is provided by the fluid and is created at the source by, for example, a pump. The total energy of the fluid in motion is reduced by friction within the pipes and other obstacles in the fluid conduit system which include these checking members that remain disposed directly in the fluid path once the check valves are open. This energy loss, also known as xe2x80x9cheadloss,xe2x80x9d should be as low as practicable in order to preserve fluid pressure.
Many designs to reduce headloss resulting from poppet check valves have been proposed. One design uses a xe2x80x9cswing checkxe2x80x9d type design in which the checking member, also called a clapper, rotates about a fixed hinge pin. The swing check valve is advantageous because it allows the checking member to move out of the path of fluid flow thereby reducing the headloss associated with conventional poppet-check valves. Clapper and spring assemblies in these conventional swing check designs can be oriented so that, as the clapper moves away from the valve-closed position, the torque produced by the spring force about the pivot axis of the clapper through the hinge pin is reduced, thereby further minimizing headloss.
Conventional swing check valves used in backflow preventers generally incorporate the same components. Typically, the clapper in such valves creates a fluid seal across a valve seat, the valve seat surrounding an opening through which fluid would otherwise flow. The valve seat is usually positioned adjacent a fluid inlet port in a valve housing of the fluid conduit system and typically is mounted by bolts to the valve housing. As the fluid flows through the port in the downstream direction, the clapper opens by rotating about a hinge pin that lies adjacent and parallel to the valve seat face. A helical compression spring is typically used to exert force onto the backside of the clapper, and the quantity of water allowed to flow through the swing check valve directly depends on the opening angle of the clapper and the spring pressure that acts to oppose this opening. This pressure is a function of the degree of compression between the clapper and some other rigid structure such as the valve housing, and fluid pressure must exceed a predetermined magnitude to overcome the spring force on the clapper in order to open the valve.
A toggle-linkage swing check valve is disclosed in Ackroyd, U.S. Pat. No. 5,236,009, which includes a valve assembly having a clapper, spring, and valve seat connected together as a unit. The valve is pivotally mounted at opposite ends to the valve seat and clapper for reorientation of the spring force during movement of the clapper so that the resultant torque applied to the clapper decreases as the clapper moves away from the valve-closed position. A disadvantage to the swing check backflow preventer of Ackroyd is that when the valve requires maintenance, a cover of the valve housing must be removed and then retaining wires must be removed so that the valve assembly can be manually disengaged from the inlet and then withdrawn from the valve housing. Installation of the valve includes the reverse steps.
Another toggle-linkage swing check valve is disclosed in Dunmire, U.S. Pat. No. 4,989,635, which includes a valve assembly having a spring, clapper, and valve seat connected together as a unit. The spring is positioned between the clapper of the clapper and a wall of the valve housing which, is preferably a recess in the cover of the valve housing. Moreover, the spring is positioned within the recess and pivotally mounted to the clapper for urging the clapper into the valve-closed position so that the torque produced by the spring on the clapper decreases as the clapper pivots away from the valve-closed position. The clapper is attached to the valve seat, which is mounted by bolts to the valve housing. A disadvantage to the swing check valve of Dunmire is that replacement of the valve assembly consequently requires the removal of the housing cover; the removal of the bolts that attach the valve assembly to the valve housing; and then the withdrawal of the valve assembly from the valve housing with careful control of the spring, which becomes free to pivot about its attachment to the clapper once the cover is removed. The valve assembly of Dunmire thus presents an awkward handling situation when the valve assembly requires assembly, replacement, or maintenance.
Yet another design for swing check valves is the xe2x80x9cRegevxe2x80x9d valve manufactured by A. R. I. Kfar Charuv of Ramot Hagolan, Israel. The valve includes a valve housing having a spring and a clapper that are positioned adjacent an inlet port of a valve housing. The spring includes a spring base and the clapper has a cam member that remains in continuous engagement with the spring base. The clapper is mounted to the valve housing by a hinge pin and the spring is positioned in a valve housing recess above the clapper so that it is axially compressible in a direction perpendicular to fluid flow through the valve housing and forces engagement of the spring base with the cam member to force the clapper towards the valve-closed position. The spring does not vary in its orientation during movement of the clapper as in the toggle-linkage designs discussed above, i.e., the spring is not pivotally mounted at its ends. The torque produced by the spring force on the clapper about the hinge pin is reduced as the clapper moves away from the valve-closed position to thereby minimizing headloss. A disadvantage to the Regev valve is that, in order to replace any component of the valve assembly or replace the entire valve assembly itself, the entire valve housing must be removed from the fluid conduit system and replaced. Furthermore, comparing the Regev valve to the valves of Ackroyd and Dunmire, there is no valve assembly disposable within a valve housing in the Regev valve which can be removed from a fluid conduit system without removing the valve housing as required by backflow preventer regulation.
More recent designs for swing-type backflow preventer valves are disclosed in applicant""s Patent Nos. 5,711,341 and 5,794,655. Both of these patents disclose a valve housing having a spring and a clapper that are positioned adjacent an inlet port. The spring includes a base, with the rocker arm of the clapper having a roller which remains in continuous engagement with the spring base. The top end of the spring is attached to the interior surface of a hydraulic tap threaded into the valve housing. The clapper is mounted to the valve housing by a hinge pin and the spring is positioned in a valve housing recess above the clapper so that it is axially compressible in a direction perpendicular to fluid flow through the valve housing and forces engagement of the spring with the cam member to force the clapper towards the valve-closed position. The spring remains in a position perpendicular to the direction of fluid flow at all times.
Therefore, it is an object of the invention to provide an improved swing check valve which can be easily and readily removed from and inserted into a valve housing of a fluid conduit system by simply removing and installing, respectively, a cover of the valve housing.
It is another object of the invention to provide an improved swing check valve which has a simple, low maintenance, low friction clapper mechanism that creates low headloss.
It is another object of the invention to provide a swing check valve which has a narrow profile thereby reducing valve height.
It is another object of the invention to provide a swing check valve which has a compression spring which is self-contained and requires no interior attachment.
It is another object of the invention to provide a swing check valve which is energized during final assembly.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved swing check valve which includes a spring that is removably positioned against the valve housing cover and that is oriented for axial compression and expansion of the spring at varying angles within a range of angles, all of which are oblique to the direction of fluid flow through the valve housing.
It is another object of the invention to provide a swing check valve which has characteristics which provide a low, relatively flat headloss curve.
It is another objective of the present invention to provide an improved swing check backflow preventer which utilizes two swing-check valves of the present invention in serial combination with one another.
These and other objects of the present invention are achieved in the preferred embodiments disclosed below by providing a swing check valve for controlling fluid flow, comprising a valve housing having a port for fluid flow therethrough, the valve housing including a removable cover for accessing the interior of the valve housing. A valve is disposed within the interior of the valve housing for controlling the fluid flow through the valve housing. The valve includes a valve seat in fluid communication with the port and a clapper mounted in the valve housing on a pivotally-mounted rocker arm and moveable between an open position responsive to fluid flow in a flow direction and a closed position sealed against the valve seat responsive to fluid flow in an opposite, backflow direction. A spring is captured in the valve housing by the removable cover without attachment to the cover, and normally urges the clapper into the closed position sealed against the valve seat. A first pivot is carried by the spring and cooperates with a mating interior surface of the cover for permitting unattached pivotal movement of the spring relative to the cover. A second pivot is carried by the spring and cooperates with a mating pivot surface carried on the rocker arm for permitting unattached pivotal movement of the spring relative to the rocker arm whereby the spring is allowed to pivot within the valve housing responsive to movement of the clapper.
According to one preferred embodiment of the invention, the first pivot carried by the spring comprises a ball and the mating interior surface of the cover comprises a concave surface against which the ball pivots.
According to another preferred embodiment of the invention, the second pivot comprises a convex bearing surface carried by the spring and the mating pivot surface carried on the rocker arm comprises at least one roller.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the second pivot comprises a convex bearing surface carried by the spring and the mating pivot surface carried on the rocker arm comprises a pair of spaced-apart rollers mounted on the rocker arm.
Preferably, the second pivot comprises a convex bearing surface carried by the spring and the mating pivot surface carried on the rocker arm comprises a pair of spaced-apart rollers mounted on the rocker arm, the pair of rollers including a static roller carried on a pin about which the rocker arm pivots to permit movement of the clapper and a spaced-apart dynamic roller which moves in an arc along the convex bearing surface as the clapper pivots.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the spring is removably positioned within the valve housing for being axially compressed and expanded between two angles responsive to movement of the clapper, both of which angles are oblique to the direction of flow of fluid through the valve housing.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the force of the spring acting on the clapper when the clapper is in the closed position produces a torque that is greater than the torque produced by the spring acting on the clapper when the clapper is in the open position.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the clapper includes an alignment compensator for preventing out-of-alignment movement of the clapper relative to the valve seat, and comprises an alignment spring mounted on the rocker arm and engaging the clapper at a point wherein the point of attachment of the rocker arm to the clapper is between the alignment spring and the pivot point of the rocker arm.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the alignment spring is a coil spring.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the alignment spring is a flat spring.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, a swing check backflow preventer valve is provided which comprises a valve housing having a port for fluid flow therethrough. The valve housing includes a pair of spaced-apart removable covers for accessing an interior of the valve housing and a pair of valves disposed within the interior of the valve housing for controlling the fluid flow through the valve housing. Each of the pair of valves includes a valve seat in fluid communication with the port, a clapper pivotally mounted in the valve housing on a rocker arm and moveable between an open position responsive to fluid flow in a downstream direction and a closed position sealed against the valve seat responsive to fluid flow in an opposite, backflow direction. A spring is captured in the valve housing by a respective one of the removable covers without attachment to either the respective cover or valve housing, and normally urges the clapper into the closed position sealed against the valve seat. A first pivot is carried by the spring and cooperates with a mating interior surface of the respective cover for permitting pivotal movement of the spring relative to the respective cover. A second pivot is carried by the spring and cooperates with a mating pivot surface carried on the rocker arm for permitting pivotal movement of the spring relative to the rocker arm whereby the spring is allowed to pivot within the valve housing responsive to movement of the clapper.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, a swing check backflow preventer valve is provided which comprises valve housing means having port means for fluid flow therethrough, the valve housing means including a pair of spaced-apart removable cover means for accessing an interior of the valve housing means. A pair of valve means is disposed within the interior of the valve housing means for controlling the fluid flow through the valve housing means. Each of the pair of valve assemblies includes valve seat means in fluid communication with the port means, clapper means pivotally mounted in the valve housing means on rocker arm means and moveable between an open position responsive to fluid flow in a downstream flow direction and a closed position sealed against the valve seat means responsive to fluid flow in an opposite, backflow direction. A resilient means is captured in the valve housing means by a respective one of the removable cover means without attachment to either the respective cover means or valve housing means, and normally urges the clapper means into the closed position sealed against the valve seat means. A first pivot is carried by the resilient means and cooperates with a mating interior surface of the respective cover means for permitting pivotal movement of the resilient means relative to the respective cover means. A second pivot is carried by the resilient means and cooperates with a mating pivot surface carried on the rocker arm means for permitting pivotal movement of the resilient means relative to the rocker arm means whereby the resilient means is allowed to pivot within the valve housing means responsive to movement of the clapper means.